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Ultima VII Nitpicks
Introduction Ultima VII Part I: The Black Gate is considered by many Ultima fans to be the pinnacle of the Ultima series. Britannia has finally come completely alive! There are hundreds of different items to interact with. A hundred NPC's each have their own distinct personality. The Avatar can earn money baking bread, picking crops, fishing, and much more. Plus, there is an engrossing non-linear plot about a gruesome murder mystery and a eery voice whispers to the Avatar in his head. Nitpickers are free to take everything apart! Ignorance of Predecessors Marney's Mother In Ultima VII, we learn who the killers of Marney’s mother’s really were, and they are completely different from who we were told they were in Ultima VI. Ultima Underworld The events in Ultima Underworld are largely ignored. For instance, the people in Destard are gone, as are the ruins of the keep and other landmarks on the Isle of the Avatar? Covetous Remodeled Covetous has suddenly become a mine, but in the past, it was a crypt. Pocketwatch When the Avatar first meets him in Ultima VII, Shamino gives him his pocketwatch, saying that the Avatar left it with him on his last adventure (presumably Ultima VI). However, in Martian Dreams, which is unquestionably set after Ultima VI, since the Avatar already has the Orb of the Moons, the Avatar still had his pocketwatch. Shrine of Diligence On Terfin, the Shrine of Diligence (Exodus) is a gigantic statue of a daemon. In Ultima VI, however, the Shrine of Diligence merely showed a model of Exodus’ head placed atop a pedestal. Beh Lem, et al. Where is Beh Lem? Draxinusom is still alive after all, and he is much older. On a related note, Draxinusom is the only gargoyle from Ultima VI still alive. Why? Response: Since Beh Lem stated that he didn't have a true name yet and would as an adult, he could very well be one of the adult winged gargoyles in U7. ''Sir'' Dupre In Ultima VII, the Avatar was told on several occasions that Dupre has been knighted since your last quest. However, in Ultima VI, Dupre is already referred to as a knight during the introduction. Wingless, but not Dumb In Ultima VI, the books in the gargoyle world make pretty clear that the wingless gargoyles can not speak (Beh Lem was a young winged in case anyone wonders), yet in Ultima VII, they are all speaking. Wisp Whistle In Ultima VII the Avatar requires a whistle to communicate with wisps. In previous games, such as Ultima VI, there's no need for the whistle. Armageddon Spell The Armageddon spell should actually not be mentioned in the Book of the Fellowship, since the spell isn't common knowledge. Although the Avatar and his companions learned the spell from the Wisps in Ultima VI, it's doubtful they would share the secret of a spell capable of eliminating all life in Britannia. Golem Creation A book in Forge of Virtue tells the Avatar how to create Golems, and that the author of the book was the one who created them in the first place. This contradicts Underworld I, where the Avatar encountered Golems in the Abyss. Julia's Amnesia When the Avatar speaks to Julia, she claims to have been working as a tinker for just a short while, and that she “doesn’t have the patience to be a proper tinker,” and that she will probably give it up soon. She has been a tinker since Ultima IV, over 200 years ago. Magic Carpet In Ultima VII the Avatar is told that some magician made the magic carpet. This directly contradicts Ultima V, where Monsieur Loubet brought the carpet to Britannia from his homeland. Wisp-Borg In every Ultima where Wisps are friendly, they will tell you that they have a collective consciousness so much so that they have trouble understanding how humans don’t have one. But in Ultima VII, they tell the Avatar that the Wisp government sent them to find out about the Fellowship. Why do creatures with a shared mind need or have a government? Size of Runes In previous Ultimas, the runes were small stones; in Ultima VI the Avatar is told that they can be strung into a necklace. When the Avatar asks about them, Daver, the bellringer in Britain says: "Magical little things. There’s a symbol on one side and a letter on the other. Probably spell something out if you put ’em all on a necklace. But that hasn’t been done in a long time." Elsewhere in the game they are also described as very small; e.g. in Jhelom a rat snatched the rune and carried it into its hole, and in Skara Brae the rune was missing, hidden in a basket in Marney’s chest. In Ultima VII, the runes have become huge blocks of stone. Technical Shortcomings Shrine of the Codex If the Shrine of the Codex is a national monument, then why was it redesigned between Ultima VI and VII? And where are the flames of Infinity and Singularity? Jailbreak! Why does the prison cell in Yew have a lever to open a secret wall? Gorn's Friend The designers forgot to adjust the Gorn dialogue after the destruction of the Cube Generator. Hook Slips Up Hook seems to be keen on his ritual, but when he murders Alagner, he forgets to pluck the candles into feet and arms. Jaana's Face Lift Why does Jaana look younger in Ultima VII than she did in Ultima VI? The Incredible Shrinking Vortex Cube! The Vortex Cube has become considerably smaller in Ultima VII. Moat Monster Why is there a dangerous, tentacled sea-creature in Lord British’s moat in Ultima VII? More Fellowship Propaganda According to the Book of Fellowship, the Isle of the Avatar is volcanic. However, there are no volcanoes there in the game. Reasoning: Perhaps Batlin put that in his propaganda to discourage inquisitive souls from exploring the location where the Black Gate is being built. Disappearing Pillar There are three small pillars around the Black Gate. One’s to the left, the other one to the right, and the third one behind. Now when you have destroyed the gate, you only see two... Where has the third one gone? Deceit's New Location In Ultima VII, Dungeon Deceit is located on Dagger Isle, instead of the small island off Dagger Isle, like in all previous Ultimas. Guard Rooms Why do the guards in Lord British’s Castle not have their own rooms in Ultima VII? Don’t they ever go to sleep? Hostile Mages Why do hostile mages have no problems casting spells, considering the huge problems with magic all over Britannia? Seasonal Changes In Trinsic, autumn has already begun, while summer still reigns in the rest of Britannia. Geography of Britannia In the Book of Fellowship, Batlin writes about Gargoyles commuting from Terfin to Minoc. The author of this had the wrong torus world model in mind when he wrote it. In reality, Terfin is too far away from Minoc, on the other side of Britannia. Astronomical Alignment When the Avatar is about to destroy the Black Gate and then chooses to take another look at the orrerry in Moonglow, he will notice that the planets and moons have not changed their position into the necessary constellation, obviously ignoring the upcoming Astronomical Alignment. Horace's Tower Horace tells us that his domain, the Dark Tower, is constructed of a mysterious substance that inhibits magic, which we all know to be as Blackrock. But when the Avatar uses Rudyom’s Wand on the Dark Tower, nothing happens. Shouldn't the whole tower explode, since it is made of Blackrock? Lord British's Trump Card Lord British tells you that healing is the only spell that still works right for him. Yet, when he is assailed, he can cast lightning bolts quite well in self-defense. Armageddon Kills the Dead, Too! Why does Armageddon also destroy undead creatures? They are already dead, so they shouldn’t be affected by the spell. Brohm Some confusion with names: Gorn’s deity was previously referred to as “Brohm”, while in Ultima VII, he’s named “Brom”. Throne on the Isle of the Avatar Why is there a huge throne on the Isle of the Avatar? If it is meant for the Guardian, then why would he just have a throne in a tiny room, staring into a blank cave wall? Homeless Foreman Why does Mikos, the mine supervisor of Minoc, have no house? Asynchrone Orbit The orrery in Moonglow is completely asynchronous. It’s supposed to display the current positions of planets and moons. Yet the moons move with crazy speed. Shouldn’t they move synchronically or relatively to the real moons? Otherwise, the orrery would be pretty pointless. Broken Glass Why can broken glass kill the Avatar even when he wears magic boots? When do the Companions Sleep? Sleeping customs in Britannia: The Avatar sleeps in his armour, while all his companions watch, never sleeping themselves, or not on a bedroll anyway. Fellowship Elocution Lessons Sasha the young gypsy speaks with a heavy gypsy accent, as all gypsies in Britannia do, often enunciating his w’s as v’s instead. Throughout his entire speech he speaks with an accent, but then, when he starts rattling off about the philosophy of the Fellowship and all its wonderful tenets (which just coincidentally happens to be the same as nearly every other Fellowship member’s throughout the game) he loses his accent entirely, speaking like any normal Britannian would. General problems Gorn's Homeland Where exactly is Gorn’s homeland? From what Gorn tells you in Ultimas V, VI, and VI, it sounds as though his homeland exists in another world outside of Britannia, yet Beverlea in Paws has one of his baby toys. Swamp Poison It was stated in the Ultima IV manual that the poisoning from toxic marshes is due to toxic gases. So why is it then that wearing Swamp Boots prevents poisoning? In fact, even Tseramed mentions that marshlands are dangerous because of toxic gases. The Ancient Rule of Magic: Computer Always Cheats Why can Jaana, Lord British, and in fact everyone else cast spells without spellbooks or reagents all the time? Constructed Plot The beginning of the game: A mighty being, unknown so far, threatens the Avatar. Then a moongate opens up in the garden. The Avatar looks at his Orb of the Moons, then walks through the moongate without taking the Orb with him. Spilling the Beans I can imagine the situation of the designers when they noticed that the Avatar most certainly wants to tell Lord British about the Guardian as soon as his existence is indicated. They must have been quite clueless, so they gave up and solved the problem with a single dialogue line with a bored Lord British telling the Avatar that he should collect more proof. Magical Covetous Magic receives its energy from the ethereal waves, which Blackrock can block. Large amounts of Blackrock can therefore block magic, as you can see later in Underworld II with the Blackrock Dome. In Ultima VII, however, magic works fine in Covetous. (This flaw is even more severe because there are anti-magic areas in Ultima VII, so it would have been easy to implement by the programmers.) Avatar's Map How does the Avatar has an up-to-date map of Britannia upon his arrival in Trinsic? Solid Watchmanship How is it that the Avatar’s pocketwatch is still working after 200 years? Explanation: It's more than likely that Avatar's pocketwatch is key-winded; and made of brass (which is resistant to rust) so it's more than possible that the pocketwatch may be still on service, even in the depts of Pagan's ocean, where it ended. Jaana's Paltry Healing Skills How comes Jaana has just as much trouble casting magic even after you fix the Ether? And why is it that she always has an easier time when she's outside the party and you're paying her 400 gold? Jaana's hidden compartment Related to the one before: If you dismiss Jaana, pay 400 Gold to her in order to revive someone, and recruit her again, she doesn't carry the 400 Gold you paid her just a minute before. Lonely Hearts Club In Cove, Lord Heather says that Nastassia is the only person without a lover. However, there is no evidence that Rudyom has a lover, either. More Constructed Plot Who brings the Avatar to Britannia? The Guardian appears on the Avatar’s monitor and taunts him, which is what prompts the Avatar to return to the circle of stones, where he finds a red moongate waiting. This would seem to imply that the Guardian brought the Avatar to Britannia. But later on, the Time Lord says that he summoned the moongate that took you to Britannia. But even if he did, it’s extremely unlikely that you would have found it if not for the Guardian’s appearance. What is going on here? As this is a major aspect of the plot, we might assume the designers deliberately left this question open. Perhaps the Time Lord used the Orb of the Moons to create the gate to Earth. And perhaps the Avatar leaves behind the orb so that # the Time Lord might have the opportunity to create a gate back once the quest is over, # to avoid the possibility of a problem occurring bringing the Orb of the Moons through its own gate when going between dimensions/whatever, and/or # so that someone may follow him if he fails - he’s had years to write a note or tell other people what to do if such a thing might happen - the whole Guardian thing would be creepy enough to want to take precautions like that. On the other hand, you could also put it this way: The Avatar looks at his Orb of the Moons and notices that it’s glowing. This indicates that someone from Britannia calls for him, and that’s why he walks to the circle of stones. As for the Guardian appearing on his screen... Well, maybe the Guardian notices that the Time Lord has summoned a red moongate on Earth, and so he seeks to contact the Avatar as soon as possible, to try scaring him away. Exodus' Psyche In Forge of Virtue: How did Exodus’ Psyche free itself from the Shrine of Diligence? Iolo, Hold This Black Wand For Me . . . At the end of Ultima VII, if the Avatar wanted to go home and still prevent the Guardian from entering Britannia, couldn’t he have gone through the Black Gate and then had Shamino or someone else use the wand to destroy it after he went through? Viewing the Codex If the Avatar follows the instructions for viewing the Codex, why can he not view the Codex? Abyss If the Abyss did really erupt as the manual says, then this event must have destroyed the Shrine of Codex as well. Despite this, the Shrine has been left untouched. Crazy Plan The Fellowship wants to murder Lord British. Just how do they plan to do it? Lord British is the most powerful mage in Britannia and invulnerable! They also want to murder the Avatar, but they resurrect him every time he dies. Forge of Virtue Paradox The book in Forge of Virtue about the Stone of Castambre appears to have been written after the Isle of Fire sank. It says something about how the Isle disappeared, whereas the golems were obviously built, by using the book, before the isle sank. Fellowship Fortress Why are there are suddenly a wall and a massive door at the Shrine of Codex? And why did not anyone notice it before? It is unlikely that the wall was built by Britannian authorities, since only the Fellowship has the key. Yet More Fellowship Propaganda In the Book of Fellowship, it is stated that the Codex shrine is a national monument and is under armed guard day and night. However: 1. There are no visitors. 2. The Stone Guardians only allowed people on quests to approach the shrine. (Of course, it’s as strange that the Avatar can walk to the shrine without any problems, as I’d like to add. Perhaps it’s all because the Codex is gone.) This certainly might explain the previous point to some extent, but still, there should be pilgrims on the isle. 3. There are no guards. Ruins of Blackthorn Palace In the Book of Fellowship, Batlin writes that one can visit the ruins of Blackthorn’s Palace on Terfin. However, it is not possible. My Lips are Sealed Is it not strange that the Avatar cannot coax Lord British to talk about Gwenno's scroll, in which she mentions Serpent Isle? It even states that she had talked to the king about it. Sparing Caine Why can’t you tell Caine that the mayor gave him the wrong mixture? Erethian's Sanity Why isn’t Erethian affected by the mage madness? No Wonder the Runes Were Stolen! Why did Lord British and Draxinusom put the lenses in the museum, where everyone can steal them, which the Avatar does in Forge of Virtue? Those lenses represent access to the infinite wisdom of the Codex. They are supposed to be locked up night and day by the kings, are they not? Yet More Fellowship Propaganda The Book of Fellowship speaks about wars in Britannia in the time between Ultima VI and VII. We don’t get to hear anything about those wars in the game, nor will they be mentioned in any later Ultima. Mad Money Why is Rudyom selling the Armageddon spell like it was nothing? Yes, he is crazy, but the Avatar or his party do not seem to be worried. Rudyom could sell the spell to anyone who wanted to destroy Britannia. Alagner's Murder Does anyone in New Magincia notice that Alagner has been murdered? I cannot seem to remember a crowd of people standing outside his house, and I do not remember anyone mentioning his murder. Arcadion's Wishy-Washy Killing If you tell Arcadion to kill a liche, he will tell you that it is too powerful for him to kill. He has no trouble knocking off Lord British or King Draxinousum, though. Guardian's Mental Projection It seems that it is a rather common practice for Guardian to speak directly into the minds of those he deems particularly useful for his cause. In The Black Gate, the Cube Generator was required for Big G to speak to people in Britannia. It is strange how he can speak to people in other worlds without any such device to transmit his voice. Well, there is nothing to support the claim that there isn’t such a device somewhere on those worlds. Even more confusing: The Guardian did keep speaking to the Avatar in Black Gate after the cube had been destroyed. Response: It could be because the Avatar is carrying the Cube Prism. Magic Mining Tools Rudyom’s book “Observations of Black Rock” says that blackrock is absolutely indestructable and can be melted or formed only by magic. So how do they mine the stuff in the mines of Vesper then? Missed 'em Again! If the Avatar (almost) dies, he is taken to Paws by, supposedly, Abraham and Elizabeth. The strange thing is that after all the trouble he takes to track them down, his companions do not even bother to question them while he is asleep. Is Erethian Blind or Not? In Forge of Virtue, when the Avatar gives Erethian the Scroll of Infinity, he immediately proceeds to read and decipher it, even though Erethian is blind! Erethian says that his blindness does not impair his abilities when the Avatar asks about it, but when he ask about books or about the Scroll of Infinity, Erethian says something like “If only I remember where I put it...”, showing clearly that he cannot see the books/scrolls, let alone read them. The Avatar even has to fetch the Scroll of Infinity himself because Eretian cannot see; after which the Avatar give it to him so that he can decipher it. Explanation: Erethian becomes offended when the Avatar mentions his blindess and defends himself by saying that he can feel the raised edges of ink on scrolls and books. Penumbra Upon awakening Penumbra from her self-induced centuries-long slumber, she is immediately assailed by the damaged ethereal waves. Once you place the blackrock pieces upon the four pedestals surrounding her stone bed (which were positioned quite conveniently I might add, though one may argue that her psychic abilities could have told her their construction was necessary 200 years ago), the material blocks the ethereal waves and her mental integrity is restored. What I wonder is this: if the blackrock pieces actually do negate magic, then how can she enchant the ethereal ring that the Avatar obtains from the Sultan of Spektran’s treasury, which I am presuming takes magic to enchant? Garok Al-Mat When the Avatar rescue Garok Al-Mat from the dungeon he says, “Come visit me in my house in the mountains, I’ll sell you reagents!” But he is nowhere in Britannia afterwards. Sam's Wagon Sam talks about his wagon which he rides around New Magincia to sell flowers to people. However, this wagon does not appear anywhere in the game, and there is no mention of it being sold or destroyed. Blackrock Sword If you speak to Horance while he’s still evil, he says that he recently discovered that a “certain ore...if fashioned properly, can become the bane of the vaunted Lord British.” He mentions that he’s also used the ore for building his fortress. The game of course indicates that this ore is blackrock. Blackrock - bane of LB - Blackrock Sword. If Horance knows this, surely Batlin knows this through his own studies or through the Guardian, and therefore Hook could know this. Why then does Batlin not put this knowledge to some use, considering the Fellowship intends to murder Lord British? Perhaps Horance's reference is a link to the plot in Minoc involving Blackrock and the dedication ceremony for Owen's statue - one that Lord British is set to attend? Britannian Tourist? In the Book of the Fellowship’s traveller’s guide, Batlin uses the term "tourist" a lot. When you get to the part about the Britannian runes, he says that the runes might befuddle a casual tourist, and says they are beginning to fall out of fashion. So the question is where exactly are these “tourists” coming from, that they would not recognize the Britannian runic alphabet? They’d have to be coming from another planet, because Britannia is its own planet, is it not? Since the runes are still in use, anyone who can read would probably be taught how to read runes as well. The only signs you see written in the modern alphabet are Fellowship related signs. Gender Confusion If one is playing as a female Avatar and attempts to kill Lord British with the Blackrock Sword, the Avatar's portrait will flip to male as they taunt the monarch. To be more precise, the taunting is really from the daemon of the sword through the Avatar's mouth. Perhaps, because the daemon is himself male, he must change the Avatar's gender to deliver the message? Syria's homeland Syria says that she's from "the south". But there isn't really anything south of Jhelom, unless you count Serpent's Hold and Terfin, which are really more to the east. External links * Hacki's Ultima Nitpicks - hosted by Bootstrike Ultima VII Nitpicks